Santa Clara has been my top choice since I applied in October, but I haven't heard anything until I got an e-mail today which said this.

Friday, March 27, 2009

Dear Ryan,

I just wanted to update you on your application to Santa Clara Law School since you’ve not heard anything lately.

No decision has been made on your file at this time, but we hope to have a decision to you by the end of April. At that time you will either be admitted or be placed on a wait-list. If you are placed on the wait-list you will receive additional information at that time.

We do not need any additional information. It is not necessary to call us for an update since we are unable to give information over the telephone.

We realize that your file has been complete for some time, and we know that you are anxiously waiting to hear from us. Also, we do understand that other schools may have given you their decisions by now. Reading and evaluating almost 4500 applications is a time consuming activity. The faculty admissions committee is working hard to put together an outstanding entering class based on all the information applicants provide – not just numbers.

The way I read it is I will either be admitted or waitlisted, but I am not sure what to make of it. Did anyone else get this letter? I am excited about possibly going there, but I don't want to get my hopes up to much. Anyways, I just wanted to see if anyone has ever received a letter like this and what ended up happening. Thanks for your help.

I got that same email last night on my way home from work. I checked the Online Status Check and it says "In 2nd Review".

What I am guessing is that we passed the first initial rounds of review at the lower end of the range of scores (GPA, LSAT). Now they are either reading our personal statements/letters of rec or waiting to hear back from their commits before throwing us an invite.

I think that's a pretty pathetic letter from the school. As your letter acknowledges, almost every other school will require a deposit before they'll make a "decision," so the only people to take them up on that are people who are either 1) dying to go there (and don't mind losing a deposit), or 2) those who won't get in anywhere else.That statement about how hard it is to go through lots of applications and make a decision on time is even more pathetic. Every other school in America faces the same tough deadline and yet somehow manages to meet it; it is almost an admission of incompetence. Are you sure still want to go there?I would interpret the "second review" as a waitlist, because for all intents and purposes that is what it amounts to. I think the truth is the school didn't have the courage to say so.

I just saw this old post and yes Santa Clara is nothing special and I am really glad I did not go there. There b.s. response goes to show you should never get caught up in rankings, because had I gone I would have lost 48,000 in scholarship money going to their school and what is really the difference between Santa Clara and GGU. They can hold their head up at people saying the are the 82nd best school, but NEAT who cares. I was obsessed with rankings when applying thinking it really mattered, but at this point after a year of law school I realize what complete B.S. the rankings are and hopefully any potential law student will take a lot more factors into consideration instead of some private companies idiotic ranking formula (which has almost no objective measurements other than yea bar passage counts for a whopping 2% of a schools rankings just look to their formula and you will understand why U.S. is disapproved by the ABA,AALS, LSAC and any official law school organization.

Yes Harvard is better than GGU or Santa Clara for that matter, but nobody really cares about the difference between 82 and 112 and if you have the choice between those two take the money.

Just actually really glad I did not go into 48,000 more in debt to have a degree from the 84th best school than the 112th. Had I known what I know now the law school decision would have been way easier and I would have taken the money at GGU instead of stressing about going to MSU etc. Part of me still thinks it might have been better to go to La Verne and gotten a J.D. with 0 debt and if knew what I knew now I might have done that. It is to late now to go back, but I just realize what a joke it is to worry about the difference between tier 2/3/4 rankings and it is definitely worth taking the money at least in my opinion.

Maybe others feel differently and that is fine, but my opinion is if you have the option to go to a tier 2 at full price or a tier 4 take the money, because the rankings are an absolute joke once you get outside the top 25 or so schools.

For what it's worth, every school finishes applications at the end of April. Davis got back to me the last week of April with a WL. This is not uncommon if you look at accept/reject graphs.So, Santa Clara is not late, admitting incompetence, or anything else... IMO they are actually being sincere, giving you an update and all they can do at this point to ease your patience.